


The Songs We Carry

by Midnight_Queen



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Ending is a little Saucy, F/M, Fluffy, How on earth do I do tags??, Kinda?, Let The Apprentice Call Julian Ilya 2k19, Let them be happy and cute MY GOD, Romance, The Author apologizes for this tagging system, singing and dancing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 17:44:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17411393
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Midnight_Queen/pseuds/Midnight_Queen
Summary: Julian comes into the shop with a song stuck in his head, and gets a little more than he bargained for when Esperanza also knows the song. Not that he's complaining, of course."Hello my dear." Julian replied, leaning down to quickly kiss her lips. "May I have this dance?" he asked. Esperanza grinned widely, nodding. She shifted her shoulders back and her hand on his shoulder wrapped around to the back of his shoulder blade. Julian mirrored her smile, wrapping his free arm around her waist and beginning to sing again."





	The Songs We Carry

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Arcana visual novel, or any of those characters mentioned in this piece. It all belongs to Nix Hydra.
> 
> Notes: I imagine this piece set post-game, when I headcanon that my apprentice has regained the memories of her past.

Esperanza was upstairs in her bedroom, looking through one of Asra’s books for a particular recipe a customer had requested, when she heard the door of the shop swing open. Her familiar, a red fox called Riley, leapt up from where he had been curled up on the rug and ran down the stairs.

“Esperanza, darling, are you here? I’m—” Julian announced, cutting himself off with a soft grunt. Esperanza snickered, assuming Riley had jumped onto him.

“I’m upstairs!” she called, tucking the book she needed under her arm and making her way downstairs.

Julian was kneeling on the floor, scratching Riley’s ears and singing softly. Esperanza smiled, recognizing the language Julian was singing in as that of Bebarsy, her homeland. After setting her book down on the counter, she listened more closely to Julian’s song as she approached. Julian stood, taking one of her hands in his as he did.

Esperanza felt herself blush slightly as Julian locked eyes with her and pressed a kiss to the back of her hand. Suddenly, a mischievous look entered Julian’s eyes and Esperanza raised an eyebrow at him. Julian winked, smirking at her, as he lifted his arm and led her into a twirl. Esperanza laughed loudly as she spun and was pulled into Julian’s chest.

“Well hello to you too, Julian.” Esperanza said, rising onto her tiptoes to kiss his cheek, moving her free hand from where it had landed on his chest up to his shoulder.

“Hello my dear.” Julian replied, leaning down to quickly kiss her lips. “May I have this dance?” he asked. Esperanza grinned widely, nodding. She shifted her shoulders back and her hand on his shoulder wrapped around to the back of his shoulder blade. Julian mirrored her smile, wrapping his free arm around her waist and beginning to sing again.

Julian’s hand on Esperanza’s back suddenly shifted, turning her so they both faced the same direction. Esperanza smirked, and they danced a few steps before she spun sharply to face him again, her short, curly hair whirling around her face. She murmured the words Julian sang as they danced. Esperanza suddenly let out a short peal of laughter, recognizing the song.

“What’s wrong?” Julian asked, looking down at her with furrowed eyebrows and a confused look in his eyes.

“Nothing, mi amor.” Esperanza assured him. She wondered though, if Julian knew that most versions of this song were sung in taverns at a much faster pace, and that it was perhaps not as romantic as he thought. “Where did you learn this song?” she asked instead.

“A few of the men I travelled with back when I was a dashing roguish pirate spoke Bebarsian, and they sang it fairly often. Especially when we stopped at a tavern.” Julian replied, smirking. “Of course, I, uh, I do not happen to speak Bebarsian. And so I don’t _quite_ know what the words mean…” Julian trailed off, blushing furiously. “I do speak a language that’s fairly similar though.” He said softly, looking away from Esperanza’s face.

_Oh no, he looks so sad._ Esperanza thought, knitting her eyebrows together. _Oh we’ll have to fix that._

“I’m afraid if you’re trying to be charming and romantic you’ve missed the mark a bit. And it’s not quite the kind of song we can dance tango to.” Esperanza said, taking his hands in hers.

* * *

 

 “However…” she continued, raising one of Julian’s hands to her face, glancing sideways at him with a look that was somehow simultaneously thoughtful and playful. Julian’s breath hitched audibly as she nipped his palm lightly before pressing a kiss to the same spot.  “If you’re trying to _seduce_ me, you’re on the right course.” She finished, smiling with a gleam in her eyes. Julian decided he liked that look on her, especially when she began humming softly.

“Oho! So it’s _that_ kind of song then, is it?” Julian laughed, waggling his eyebrows. Esperanza snickered, rolling her eyes playfully. “Tell me more?” Julian asked.

The look in Esperanza’s eyes became absolutely _wicked_ , and Julian decided he liked it very much. She smirked deviously and began to sing, her voice smooth and pitched low. Julian had known already that Esperanza could sing; he had known since he regained his memories of his past—and _their_ past—in the Hanged Man’s realm. Yet he could not recall if she ever sounded quite the way she did now. Suddenly Julian felt he understood the song’s meaning she had hinted at, and he was reminded of every tale he had heard of sirens on the sea. His heart began to pound in his chest.

Esperanza adjusted her posture, pulling her shoulders down and back, lifting her chest, shifting her weight on her feet, and swaying her hips as she moved. She squeezed Julian’s hands, running her thumb slowly along his knuckles, before guiding them to rest on her hips. He raised an eyebrow, and Esperanza smirked at him, even as he watched her face flush pink. Slowly, deliberately, she stepped forward into Julian’s space, bringing a hand up to his face. Julian felt every movement of her body as it came from her center, guided by the motion of her hips. Esperanza kissed his cheek, whispering the next lyrics of the song in his ear. He still could not quite understand the words, but he now had a much better understanding of the song’s meaning, and it was enough to make him blush. Esperanza paused for a moment to give him a lingering kiss before pulling back, drawing Julian into her dance as he leaned forward to chase her lips. 

Julian stepped forward as Esperanza moved back, rolling her weight into her back leg before shifting forward and to the side again. She lifted one of his hands into hers, spinning quickly under his arm and back into him. Julian’s hands found her hips again and he hummed thoughtfully, using the connection to figure out the pattern of her movements and mimic them. He swayed his own hips in time with Esperanza’s movements, certain that he had neither the same grace nor control she did. However, the bright, encouraging smile she gave him, and the enthusiastic nodding that made her curly hair bounce about her face were enough to quell his self-consciousness for the time being.

Julian wasn’t sure how long they danced like that, with Esperanza singing, gently guiding him through the movements by tapping his foot with her own to show him which leg to step with, or emphasizing her own hip movements to help him figure out how his should move. Suddenly, however, Julian found himself in the secluded reading nook Esperanza had at the back corner of the shop near the door to the back room, being pushed backwards to unceremoniously stumble into the plush armchair. Esperanza perched on the arm of the chair, placing one hand beside his head and leaning forward and looking deep into his eyes as she sang the last phrase. She murmured the final note into his lips before tilting her head just slightly to close the distance between them. Julian brought one hand up to caress her cheek. _Sealing it with a kiss…How poetic of her._ Julian thought, smiling softly.

* * *

 

“Oh my darling,” Julian murmured as Esperanza drew back from his lips to press kisses along his jawline and down his neck. Julian bit his lip and tilted his head back.

“Yes, mi amor?” she murmured into his collarbone. She leaned away after a moment, sitting up to look at him with that wicked gleam still in her eyes. Julian took a deep breath.  

“Was this all some elaborate plan to seduce me?” he asked, smirking and raising an eyebrow. Esperanza hummed, shifting in her seat on the arm of the chair.

“Hmm…Perhaps.” She smirked.

“Well then,” Julian replied, trailing off. His smirk grew wider and before Esperanza could say anything else, his free arm wrapped around her waist and he pulled her off the arm of the chair, into his lap. She huffed a short laugh as she landed, rearranging herself to straddle him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I’d say you were quite successful, my dear. Consider me thoroughly seduced.” He finished, leaning forward to kiss her again, wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her impossibly close.

“I love you.” Esperanza murmured as she broke the kiss. She brought her hands up to rest on either side of his face, making him look her in the eyes. “I love you so much, Ilya.” She said softly, earnestly. Julian made a small sound in the back of his throat, his heart fluttering in his chest the way it always did when she called him that.

“I love you too, Esperanza, my darling.” He said, brushing a stray curl out of her face, his hand mirroring hers and resting on her cheek. He smiled softly for a moment before leaning forward to touch his forehead to hers and whisper against her lips.

_“Let me show you how much?”_

**Author's Note:**

> Des  
> Pa  
> Cito 
> 
> No, I'm not kidding; that song partially inspired this fic. A n y w a y . 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed! Also, I have a few more ideas for these two bouncing around. I'd like to write some more for them soon. Please leave a comment and let me know what you think!


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